The lawyers involved in White & Case public finance practice serve as bond counsel, underwriter's counsel and counsel to banks and other financial institutions acting as trustees, credit enhancers and liquidity providers in a wide variety of municipal finance transactions for state and local governmental agencies throughout the United States. Those transactions include issuances of general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, revenue and grant anticipation notes, assessment and tax increment bonds, certificates of participation and conduit securities where the proceeds of the securities are loaned to other governmental entities, corporations, partnerships, and qualified 501(c)(3) organizations for a variety of governmental, industrial, commercial, and charitable purposes.

Representing Banks and Other Financial Institutions: A substantial portion of White & Case's public finance experience is devoted to representing banks and other financial institutions acting as credit enhancers and liquidity providers, and as lenders. Some of our more notable recent transactions include:

• Representing Bank of America as agent for a syndicate of banks providing credit support for the $3.9 billion 1994 State of California Revenue Anticipation Warrants. Our municipal finance capabilities and experience enabled us to provide advice to the bank group on the state of California debt limit and related issues, which permitted the transaction to go forward;
   
• Representing Swiss Bank Corporation as liquidity provider supporting $293.9 million Southern California Public Power Authority Transmission Project Revenue Bonds 1991 Subordinate Refunding Series. This was the first issue of variable rate bonds to be coupled with a long-term swap to maturity; and
   
• Representing Chase Manhattan Bank as agent for a syndicate of financial institutions providing a $500 million credit facility to the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund, permitting borrowings to pay claims under windstorm casualty policies issued by the Fund. This credit facility was the first of its kind. We also represented Chase Manhattan in providing a similar facility to the Florida Windstorm Underwriting Association.
   

Bond Counsel and Underwriter's Counsel: In serving as bond counsel or underwriter's counsel, White & Case is innovative. An example is the Firm's engagement as counsel and bond counsel for the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission (now the Metropolitan Transit Authority) in three cross-border lease railcar financings with Japanese lessors. After the second financing was completed, Japanese tax law changed, precluding completion of the third financing on the same basis as the first two. Working with the Commission's financial advisors, we were able to add a tax-exempt financing to the cross-border lease transaction, which in turn allowed the third financing to close on terms most favorable to the Commission.

This financing required creative and innovative solutions to complex tax and structural issues. Our attorneys prepared the documentation, which integrated Internal Revenue Service regulations in the tax-exempt financing and withholding tax areas, Japanese tax law concerns, the purchasers' and insurer's credit requirements, and the investment bankers' and financial advisor's marketing concerns.

Resources for Public Finance Clients: The municipal finance field is not a discrete body of law. In addition to the tax and public law questions which arise in any tax-exempt financing, it is not uncommon to face environmental, bankruptcy, and litigation issues. When these issues arise, because we are a full-service firm, we are able to draw on the capabilities and experience of attorneys who practice in these areas full-time. In addition, our corporate finance practice involves us in the latest developments in corporate finance. Many financing techniques that first arose in the corporate area, such as swaps and cross-border transactions, have had municipal applications. This crossover experience has proved invaluable to our clients.

In addition to staffing transactions, attorneys in the New York and Washington offices are available to coordinate submission of documents to rating agencies and to serve as contacts for federal agencies. These resources also enable us to inform clients of legislative developments that may affect proposed financings.

White & Case can be distinguished from other law firms in municipal finance by the Firm's high level of service and the scope of its practice. We staff transactions so that schedules are met; our lawyers are accessible at all times and responsive to our clients' wishes and needs. Our lawyers are effective advocates in negotiation with other parties: We are well known in this area of the law and have pleasant and efficient working relationships with the other firms that generally act as bond counsel, underwriter's counsel, or counsel to credit and liquidity providers.